As multiple news stories, anecdotal tales, and research reveal, there is a national trend in the decline of volunteer firefighters. The decline results from a simultaneous decrease in the number of active recruits and increase in the average age of volunteers, suggesting that the issue lies in recruitment and retention.⁶ Another concern results from the type of communities under the protection of volunteer fire departments—they are generally rural and impoverished ones. A survey in south central Pennsylvania revealed that 25 percent of volunteer firefighters earned more than $50,000 annually in an area where the median income for 2009–2012 was $51,173.27.⁶ The communities protected by volunteer fire departments are likely impoverished, and those offering the protection earn less than their neighbors. Table 1 shows how CGVFD has recruited and retained a consistent number of volunteer firefighters, resulting in a steady-state equilibrium of trained staff for the department and the local community. Additionally, a majority of these volunteer firefighters were not trained upon arriving to LMU-DCOM, meaning that they successfully completed mandatory training while completing medical studies.

Table 1: Recruitment, Retention, and Staffing of CGVFD Over Five Academic Classes

*”Lost” due to fail out/dropout or other departure from LMU-DCOM and CGVFD

Table 2: Residency Placement for Inaugural class of graduate LMUD-COM and CGVFD Firefighters, as of 2016

For a few short years, medical students become residents of these communities that host their educational institution. While medical studies are more demanding than a full-time job, students should not feel immune from civic duties for the community in which they now live. “To see our students invested in making their community a more safe and secure place is a dean’s dream,” LMU-DCOM Dean Brian Kessler said. “These students have embraced LMU-DCOM’s mission of service to humanity, and they live it each day. The commitment the students have made to the Cumberland Gap Volunteer Fire Department is a special one, and it has not gone unnoticed.” For these medical students, serving their community started before answering the Hippocratic Oath as physicians and will continue long after.

References

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2. Loh AZ, Tan JS, Lee JJ, et al. Voluntary community service in medical school: a qualitative study on obstacles faced by student leaders and potential solutions. Glob Health Action. 2015;8:27562.
3. Mowery YM. A primer on medical education in the United States through the lens of a current resident physician. J Thoracic Dis. 2015;7:E473-E481.
4. S. Department of Commerce. United States Census Bureau QuickFacts, Claiborne County, Tennessee. United States Census Bureau website. Available at www.census.gov/quickfacts/table/PST045215/47025. Accessed Sept. 2, 2016.
5. Querubin J. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) instruction by osteopathic medical students to laypersons, middle school, and high school students in a rural and underserved community: a preliminary report. Poster presentation at: Association for Prevention Teaching and Research; 2016.
6. Miller A. Human Resource Strain and Organizational Survival: Investigating the Survival State of the Rural Volunteer Emergency Services in the South Central Mountains Region of Pennsylvania [master’s thesis]. Huntingdon, Pennsylvania: Juniata College; 2015.